Summary of Caribbean cruise tourism: A business of transnational partnerships by J. Anthony Hall and Ron Braithwaite During the 1980’s, the growth of the cruise industry grew far beyond anyone’s expectations. As many as four million people worldwide took cruise vacations in 1989 alone. The Caribbean has seen many of these tourists because of its proximity to Florida’s peninsula. With all of the tourists that visit the Caribbean, however, it seems that transnational cruise line operators are concerned with the fact that the governments within the Caribbean are inadequately prepared to handle all the potential business. Many ports, such as Nassau, Montego Bay and St. Croix, are have become accustomed to handling cruise business, while others are only recently experiencing the impact of 1,500 visitors. Another issue that has risen is the fact that the growth in cruise ship arrivals has out-paced the growth in stopover arrivals by a large margin. This has occurred because: I.)Based on trends, arrivals into the Caribbean will surpass stopover arrivals by 2005 a.The gap between cruise ship arrivals and stopover arrivals will narrow over time because the annual compound growth rate of cruise ship arrivals is higher than that of stopover arrivals for most Caribbean destinations b.Growth rate trends are driven by vibrant market forces i.Shift in consumer’s taste ii.Preferences for vacation packages 1.Short (3 -4 day) cruise packages II.)The multiplier effect on the national economy of a dollar spent by a cruise passenger is greater than that of a stopover passenger a.Concern of tourist authorities in Caribbean destinations is the relatively low expenditure of the cruise ship tourist compared to the stopover tourist. b.Caribbean tourist industry is segmented into three components i.Support ii.Accommodation iii.Transport III.)Hotels at Caribbean destinations feel that cruise ships are a direct competition with hotel business, thus, they do not support the government investing to expand cruise ship passenger’s facilities a.In the 1980’s, the Caribbean destinations invested significant amounts in renovating and expanding ports and docking facilities. IV.)Conclusion a.Expansion of the transnational cruise ship industry during the 1980’s has several implications for destinations in the Caribbean, such as Miami i.Miami is the leading cruise embarkation port in the world b.The relationship between internal interest groups –government and hotel operators- is strained i.Perception that cruise business is competition for hotel ii.Caribbean government must alter these perceptions in order for the two subsectors to have a cooperative relationship.
During the 1980’s, the growth of the cruise industry grew far beyond anyone’s expectations. As many as four million people worldwide took cruise vacations in 1989 alone. The Caribbean has seen many of these tourists because of its proximity to Florida’s peninsula. With all of the tourists that visit the Caribbean, however, it seems that transnational cruise line operators are concerned with the fact that the governments within the Caribbean are inadequately prepared to handle all the potential business. Many ports, such as Nassau, Montego Bay and St. Croix, are have become accustomed to handling cruise business, while others are only recently experiencing the impact of 1,500 visitors. Another issue that has risen is the fact that the growth in cruise ship arrivals has out-paced the growth in stopover arrivals by a large margin. This has occurred because:
I.) Based on trends, arrivals into the Caribbean will surpass stopover arrivals by 2005
a. The gap between cruise ship arrivals and stopover arrivals will narrow over time because the annual compound growth rate of cruise ship arrivals is higher than that of stopover arrivals for most Caribbean destinations
b. Growth rate trends are driven by vibrant market forces
i. Shift in consumer’s taste
ii. Preferences for vacation packages
1. Short (3 -4 day) cruise packages
II.) The multiplier effect on the national economy of a dollar spent by a cruise passenger is greater than that of a stopover passenger
a. Concern of tourist authorities in Caribbean destinations is the relatively low expenditure of the cruise ship tourist compared to the stopover tourist.
b. Caribbean tourist industry is segmented into three components
i. Support
ii. Accommodation
iii. Transport
III.) Hotels at Caribbean destinations feel that cruise ships are a direct competition with hotel business, thus, they do not support the government investing to expand cruise ship passenger’s facilities
a. In the 1980’s, the Caribbean destinations invested significant amounts in renovating and expanding ports and docking facilities.
IV.) Conclusion
a. Expansion of the transnational cruise ship industry during the 1980’s has several implications for destinations in the Caribbean, such as Miami
i. Miami is the leading cruise embarkation port in the world
b. The relationship between internal interest groups –government and hotel operators- is strained
i. Perception that cruise business is competition for hotel
ii. Caribbean government must alter these perceptions in order for the two subsectors to have a cooperative relationship.